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Friday, September 12, 2014

So.... I am now 16 weeks and 4 days pregnant with my second child. Yup! I have finally been successful at conceiving a baby in the right place :)

My son will have a sibling.

And when the baby is born, I will officially be done making babies. Oh yes, I will. There are too many things that can go wrong, and a lot of time of discomfort/sickness, and honestly, I can't afford more kids than 2 :)

This pregnancy, I was hoping to avoid nausea medication, and at first it felt like I might be able to, but a week later than my pregnancy with L, I needed it. And I'm glad I got it.

As for many ladies who are pregnant for the second time, I am showing a lot more than I was last time - I think. However, I am gaining a bit less weight this time around, so far (not counting that I was already 6 lbs heavier this time around to begin with).

With a big deadline of mat leave start ahead of me, I had to do something about my work situation. I just couldn't afford to wait for full time hours from my current temporary employer (I was getting a say a week of work at most) and the physical nature of that job would soon be too much for my pregnant body (being on my feet fr 8 hours straight, 5-6 of which I was outside doing what would be the equivalent of a mix of stair-masters and brisk walking in extremely hot summer temperature, with no access to a washroom or a place to have lunch... very far from ideal...) So when a former colleague called me for a 12 week job in my old industry, even if it was a 4 hour commute away a day, I accepted. The bonus was that I might get another contract afterwards and hopefully, I might eventually work there up to the birth and get enough hours to go on mat leave! If I dare to dream, I might even get something to return to after mat leave, but I need to play my cards extremely well. This is reality when you are a contractor...

So I am back to working in a dark office, and today I have a great reason why this is ideal, my pelvis would NOT be able to do the physical work anymore. When I gave birth to L, I did something to my pelvic bones that left me barely able to walk for 2 weeks, and that hurt for a good 6 months, with a few spread apart days of soreness up to 2 years later. I was a new mom at that time, with lots of worries other than taking care of that pain I had in my pelvis. So I just didn't do anything about it. But for the most part, at its worst stage, it felt like my body would split from the middle if I walked with a gait that was a little too wide. Like I was missing a piece in the front and middle (pubic bone) that would be holding things together. It was very painful to roll over in bed... It just felt like things were not solid anymore, weak and unstable.

Well, this time around, when 15 weeks came, I started feeling the pain again. If I change my posture and move my weight from one leg to the other, I feel (almost hear) the two sides of my pelvis grinding, rubbing together... At 16 weeks now, I am having a lot of pain walking, and my commute includes 40 minutes of walking! :(

I googled things and this is what I think I have Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction. It's the cartilage/ligaments that join the two part of your pelvis together, with relaxin (the pregnancy hormone that loosens things up so you can 'have space' to give birth) things loosen up and the joints move more, causing pain.

All I have to say is: if you are having similar pains after giving birth, don't just accept the pain and do nothing, talk to your doctor about it, and tell them you think that's what you might be having - a lot of them dismiss it and don't pursue 'fixing' the problem... If that doctor doesn't help find one who will.

That's about it for now. What I need to work on in the next few weeks is finding out if my contract gets extended and if not - look for more work (not easy when you are visibly pregnant, ugh.)

I hope you are all doing well. Anyone have a contractor work and pregnancy story to share? Have you ever had to look for work while you were pregnant? Let me know in the comments! :)